‘The Walking Dead’ Recap: Another One (Essentially) Bites The Dust

Boy, things have been pretty sad over in ‘Walking Dead’ land ever since the Governor laid waste to the prison back in December, huh? Luckily, on the March 9 episode ‘Alone,’ things got much better for everyone’s favorite zombie apocalypse survivors. Just kidding!

Things just got a whole lot crappier for at least two beloved characters on The Walking Dead. From major Walker kills to sweet reunions to kidnappings to tribes of maybe-cannibals to Daryl (Norman Reedus) complimenting Beth’s (Emily Kinney) singing, read all about tonight’s madness below!

‘The Walking Dead’ — Beth Kidnapped After Bonding With Daryl

How do you find your way out of a potentially controversial romantic pairing? Get the female half kidnapped, of course!

Okay, so we don’t know for sure that Beth was kidnapped, but I’m pretty sure that she would never hop in a car and leave Daryl at the drop of a hat — unless, of course, the car was being driven by Tom Waits. Beth’s kidnapping was gut-wrenching, because — unlike last week, which felt like a strange diversion, not to mention a bit heavy-handed in the metaphor department — her scenes with Daryl were sweet, optimistic, and most importantly realistic this week.

People were a little upset last week when I suggested that sexual tension between the two was a very real possibility, but as much as we all love the image of Saint Daryl of Dixon, he’s still a fully adult, human male with emotional and physical needs. (Though, strangely enough, he’s made no effort to fulfill those needs despite having a definite shot with Carol and a so-so shot with Michonne.) Beth is also an adult at this point — physically, and emotionally — and given their “last man/woman on Earth” status, their flirtation throughout this episode was COMPLETELY natural, and it made sense within their narratives on the show. They both need each other like crazy right now, so the mutual attraction that developed between them was only natural.

So basically, while I’m glad that we didn’t have to actually face the potentially icky development of Beth and Daryl exploring that sexual tension, I respect that the show didn’t ignore their basic human desires during the episode.

Now, to the kidnapping. After a day-ish of PB&J related bliss (and bonding while hanging out in coffins, of course), a hoard of Walkers ruined Beth and Daryl’s suburban bliss. Daryl easily defeated the Walkers while Beth ran outside (not out of cowardice, out of an injured foot), but by the time he ran out to find her, she had already been taken by some mysterious strangers in a car. And apparently Daryl is no Liam Neeson, as he could not catch up on foot to the fully functional automobile that seized her.

Daryl was devastated, and to be honest, so was I — I’m still going to cling to hope that Beth will be back, but for now, Daryl is stuck in a s–tstorm of misery. He was approached by a gang of vagrants who already appear to be inspired by “The Hunters” from the comics who… well… let’s just say their culinary desires are pretty much in line with Jeffrey Dahmer and Hannibal’s. (ASIDE: It is entirely possible that these are the same people who kidnapped Beth — gulp — and I’m pretty damn sure they’re also the same dudes who terrorized the still tragically absent Rick Grimes a few weeks back.)

So, in short, while the title of the episode is “alone” Daryl is currently far from it — but given his current company, 100 years of solitude would probably be preferable.

First off, Bob is absolutely fantastic. The Wire alum Lawrence Gilliard Jr. hadn’t had much screen time before tonight, but after spending some quality time with him and Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green, also pretty great), I must admit that I’m about a zillion times more invested in their grounded-in-reality relationship than in Glenn (Steven Yeun) and Maggie’s (Lauren Cohan) crazy little marital crusade.

That doesn’t mean that the final scene with Glenn discovering the Terminus ad wasn’t effective. The last few episodes have been so soul-crushingly sad — with the loneliness and dissolving hope cutting like one of Carol and Lizzie’s knives — that any little moment that even hints at the possibility of a better future feels like Christmas morning.

There are so many lost soul characters clinging to the hope of finding each other (though, curiously, Maggie doesn’t seem to be too preoccupied with finding Beth) right now, and since seeing these people so consistently miserable is not very fun for the audience, I find myself essentially bursting from the seems with happiness every time it seems like a member of the Grimes Gang is about to be reunited with another. (How big of a tease was that foot in front of Daryl, by the way? Was anyone else thinking it might somehow be Rick?)

Anywho, at this point, everybody but Beth and Daryl is likely headed to Terminus, which is undoubtedly not going to be the sanctuary promised in their brilliant ad campaign. My money would be on the fact that they won’t get there until the finale, but either way we know that Carol, Tyreese, and the children are in first place, followed by Rick, Carl, and Michonne (let’s just call them “The Dream Team,” because realistically that’s what they are), with Maggie, Sasha, and Bob days behind.

This is all kind of terrifying, because if Terminus is the trap I assume it is, then our weakest group of survivors is going to get there long before the most capable fighters. (Not that Tyreese and Carol aren’t great with the hammer and the knife, but they have three children to care for! One of them being inarguably insane!)

But even if this supposed Utopia is the actual “Sanctuary” hell from the comics, at least it will get several of the characters back together again. I really admire what The Walking Dead has been doing over these last four weeks — letting us get to know several of the show’s previous “B-characters” via some pretty admirable narrow-focused episodes — but doing an episode a week on one group clearly isn’t sustainable in the long run. I’m ready for some reunions, some Terminus, some Sgt. Ford, some football, and — most importantly — for every episode to include Rick Grimes again. It’s insane, but I never truly realized how much Andrew Lincoln anchored this show for me until I was faced with three episodes without him.

But what did you think of the episode, HollywoodLifers? Is Beth gone for good? Are those dudes actually The Hunters? Will Terminus be a real sanctuary, or TV’s version of the hellish Sanctuary from the comics? Do you miss Rick Grimes? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!